Jonathan smead



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JONATHAN SMEAD, OF EASTWALLINGFORD, ASSIGNOR TO HIMSELF AND THOMAS STEWARD, OF CLAREN DON, VERMONT.

Letter@ Patent No. 77,666, dated May 5, 1868.

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TO ALL WHOM IT MAY ACON CERN: t

Be it known that I, JDNATHAN SMEAD, of East Wallingford, in the county of Rutland, and State of Vermont, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in AutomaticFeeders for Evaporating-Apparatus; and I do hereby declare that therfollowing is a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, making a'portion of this specification, in which- ,v

Figqre'l isa plan view of' an evaporating-apparatus, fitted with feeding-mechanism made according to my invention.

Figure 2 is a. vertical longitudinal section of the same.

Similar letters o reference indicate corresponding parts in both figures.

This invention 'relates to that class of apparatus employed for evaporating saccharine liquids, such, for instance, as maple-sap, and its object is to provide an eicient 'automatic means of keeping the several pans of the apparatus constantly supplied with neither more nor less than the requisite' quantity of sap or liquid.

v The invention consists in surrounding the outs, which, resting uponv the'liquid in thepans just mentioned, serve .to actuste the other moving parts ofthe feeding-mechanism, with casings, so .constructed as to e'ectually prevent the operation of the oats from being interfered with by the ebullition of the liquid in boiling.

' The invention further consists in a novel combination of parts, arranged with reference to one of the pans of the evaporating-apparatus, in lsuch manner as to control the 'inflow of liquidto a reservoir-pipe, from which the other pansare supplied, as well as the flow to the panwith which such parts aremore immediatelyconnectd.

The invention'further consists in la. novel combination of parts, whereby the passage of the liquid, from the reservoir-pipeto the pans which it is designed to supply, may be 'automatically controlled by the height of the `liquid in such pans.-

AThe invention further consists a novel means'whereby the principal valve lis enabled to operate with very great facility in shutting oil the iiow of sap or liquid to the apparatus, against the pressure exerted thereon by the head" under which the liquid may iiovr or pass through thesnpply-pipe. v

To enable others to understand the construction and operationof my ivention. I will proceed to describe it I with reference to the drawings.

A, B, and C represent three shailow pans, which, being situated upon a suitable' arch br furnace, receive the liquid or sap to he boiled or evaporated.

Placed in onc of the pans, for instance the' pan A, is a vessel, B*, of cylindricall or other suitable shape',1

rand provided with supporting-legs, a*, which rest upon the bottom of the pan, 'having a. double bottom, within which is a chamber, a, and formed with perforations, a', in its sides, whereby' the contents of thepan may flow into the interior of the vessel. This vessel B* constitutes a casing, within lwhich is placed afloat, 0*, which vmay be of any suitable variety,.and which is4 furnished with a vertical stem, b, provided at' its upper end with a series of transverse holes, so that it may be attached to theA outer end of n. bent lever, D, hy means of a trans# verse pin, with the float 0*, at a greater or less distance from the point of attachment, as circumstances may require. v v

Provided atE is a chamber, of any suitable'form, having an opening at a, over or above the pan t Fitted to one side of the chamber E is a conical case, F,.th'e inner end of which is furnished with a valve, c, the stem d of which, being passed longitudinally through the-case, is attached tola diaphragm, e, lwhich closes 4the cuter end of the case, and .is-made of India rubber, -in order that it may properly perform its function,

which will be hereinafter fully explained.

- The stem d, passing through the elastic diaphragm just mentioned, is pivoted to the inner or lower end of the bent'lever D,`as shown in iig. 2i The case F communicates with the chamber a ofthe vessel or casing iBl, by means of a pipe,f, the chamber a being furnished with a suitable supply-pipe, a**, through which, under suitable pressure, thesap or liquid passes to such hamberi Extending horizontally over the remaining pans,

rasee 2 .'B C, is'a reservoir-pipe, AGr, which4 communicates at one end with the chnmher E, and has lholes or orifices, c',

`formed in its under side, one over'. eachfof the pans B C. Each of the orifices c has fitted' to and projecting downward from the same,- a'funnel-shaped mouth-piece, g. Placed in each of the 'pans B Gis a easing, I, lcori responding in constrnctin -withi-the casing or vessel 3*, except. that it has no false or double bottom'.' Situated in eachiof the csingslis a vertically-mo'.inf,n iloat, Jfof anyapprepriate kind,'the vertical stem z" oi' Ieach float Jliaving avvalvc, m, affixed to'its upper cnil, and ,playing within the mouth-piece g of the orifice c', ab'cve it, of the reservoir-pipe G, in such manner that when the float is allvred to descend, bythe lessening'of the quantity of'sap or liquid in the pan, the sap cr liquid in the reservoir-pipe will be permitted to dow therefrom, until thc liquid in the pan rises to ls'uchheight an to elevate the float, 'and press' the valve into the mouthpiece g, around it,` with suiiicient tightness to eifcctualljeclose the o rii'c'o c', and thus prevent further outflow through the orifice to thepan,'a constant and uniform-supply or" sap or liquid frolnthe reservoir-pipe to the pans below the same, being thus automatically secured. Thcsap or -other saccharine liquid, passing under n suitable head or pressure, through the ,pipe a, chamber a, oi' the vessel or casing B", 'and the pipef, enters the case F.

WhenA the pan is filled to the reduisite'height, the-float C* is forced upward,- and acting' through 'the stem b,

bent lever D,and' valve-stem al, operates the valve c, to permit the flow of sap or liquid to the chamber E, from which it not only iiows to fill the reservoir-pipe G, but, after such pipe is filled, lilowsthrough lthe orifice a" to the panA, until the rising of the sap or liquid in thc latter raises the oat-C*, to operate the valve c', to again;

close the case F, th s shuttin off the su l to the an A until the continued eva oration of its' contentsshall l g PP Y P a P again cause the oat to descend, when the filling operation will be repeated. 'Whenthe valvestom d is moved inward, to open-the case Ff as hereinbefore explained, the elastic diaphragm e is strained inward, so that when l the iioat C* descends, the diaphragm, by its tendency to return to its normal condition, 4will assist the return V movement of the .valve against the force exerted upon the rialve by the head or pressure of the sap or liquid in the case. Inasmnch as thewsevcral floats are surrounded by their respective casings, into which, `and underneath the i floats,` the sap or liquid passes from the pans, through the liolesin the sides of the casngs, as hereinbefore set forth, it follows that the liquid immediately under the floats will he' 4rendered coinparatil'ely still, so that the floats will not be liable to be moved vertically by the ebullition oi' thesap or liquidirrthe'pans.

i What I claim as my inv`ention,anddesire to secure by Letters Patent, is-j 1. The perforated casings, arranged within the pans, a relation with the floats operating the sap or liquids supplying mechanism, sub-strintially as and for` the purpose specified.

, ,2; The arrangement of the chamber E, the case F, valve c, with its stem d, and lient lever D, in relation with each other, and with thc'stem of Athe oat 0*, the'-.zipef, and the resez'roir-pipe-Ggsuhstantiall;t as and for the 'pur-pose set forth. I

3. The valves m, arranged upon the. stems iof 'theiloats -(Landiarelation with thei'unnel-shaped-moutha piece g, surrounding the orifices c of thereservoir-pipe G, substantially as and for the purpose specified.

4,. .The elastic diaphragm e, arranged in the end of the 'onse l?, and in relation with the valvelstem d, ope I ated bythe iioat -C*1and Vthe pipe'f, substantially as and for 4the `purpose speciiiedi 4 i i JONATHAN SMEAD. Witnesses :L l

Jenn A. SrswAnn, CALVIN T'lLmNnnr` 

